1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a game system for playing a game using an image expressing a game field and an image showing a partly enlarged game field.
2. Description of the Related Art
As a game system of this type, there is disclosed by, for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. H07-181934, a system wherein a game field image expressing a building street in which a target is hidden is displayed on a monitor screen, an enlarged image relating to a certain range centered around a shooting position at which a mimic gun is aimed is displayed on a sub-monitor screen in a sight attached to the mimic gun. According to this system, a player can locate a target while observing the game field image and accurately aim at the target while referring to the enlarged image projected on the sight, and it is possible to faithfully reproduce a sense of long distance shooting and to thereby develop interest in the game.
The above-stated conventional shooting simulation game presupposes that a mimic gun is used as an input device. However, if a player plays a shooting simulation game using a home video game device, a generalized game controller (which is sometimes referred to as a game pad or the like) pertaining to the video game device is often used as an input device. Naturally, such a generalized game controller has no sight, so that the above-stated display method cannot be adopted. Needless to say, the same problem occurs to a game system, besides the home game system, which is not provided with a mimic gun as a game controller such as, for example, an arcade game machine employing a generalized housing. Further, the same problem may possibly occur as to how to deal with a partially enlarged image obtained through not only a shooting simulation game but also a magnifying optical system such as a telescope, binoculars or a camera, if the enlarged image is used for a game.
An object of the present invention is to provide a game system capable of effectively using an image showing a game field and an image showing an enlarged neighborhood of a sight position set in the game field image separately even in an environment in which a dedicated controller such as a mimic gun cannot be used and to provide a storage medium suited to be used for the game system.
Now, the present invention will be described. To facilitate understanding the present invention, reference symbols in attached drawings in parentheses are added. The present invention should not be, however, limited to modes illustrated in the drawings.
A first embodiment of the invention is a game system characterized by comprising: a first display control device (13) for displaying a game field image (100) on a predetermined monitor screen; a sight position select device (13) for changing a sight position (SP) in the game field image in accordance with a player""s position select operation conducted to a predetermined input device (22); a second display control device (13) for displaying an enlarged image (102) relating to a predetermined range including the sight position on the monitor screen; and a magnification change device (13) for changing a magnification of the enlarged view relative to the game field image in accordance with a player""s magnification switch operation conducted to the input device.
According to this game system, since the enlarged image relating to the predetermined range including the sight position set on the game field image is displayed on the game field image, a player can check the details of the neighborhood of the sight position while referring to the enlarged image. Besides, the magnification of the enlarged image can be changed. Due to this, if the player wants to check details using the enlarged view, the magnification of the enlarged view is increased, and if the player wants to preferentially check the overall image using the game field image, the magnification of the enlarged view is reduced to thereby minimize a range in which the enlarged image and the game field image overlap each other. In this way, it is possible to appropriately adjust the size of the enlarged image depending on circumstances. Thus, it is possible to effectively, separately use an image showing a game field and an image in which the neighborhood of a sight position set in the game field image is enlarged. It is noted that even if the magnification of the enlarged image is changed, the range included in the enlarged image is fixed. Namely, the angle of view of the enlarged image is constant.
Another aspect of the first embodiment is characterized in that the second display control device switches over display and non-display of the enlarged view in accordance with a player""s display switch operation conducted to the input device in the game system. Thus, by switching the enlarged image to a non-display state if the display thereof is unnecessary, the enlarged image is eliminated from the field image, thereby making it possible to visually check all the corners of the game field image without being obstructed by the enlarged image.
A second embodiment of the invention is a game system comprising: a first display control device (13) for displaying a game field image (100) on a predetermined monitor screen; a sight position select device (13) for changing a sight position (SP) in the game field image in accordance with a player""s position select operation conducted to a predetermined input device (22); a second display control device (13) for displaying an enlarged view (102) relating to a predetermined range including the sight position on the monitor screen; and a transparency processing device (13) for allowing observation of the game field image in back of the enlarged view by transmitting said enlarged view to a predetermined transparency.
According to this embodiment, the enlarged image is set in a semitransparent state and superposed on the game field image, thereby making it possible for the player to check simultaneously the content of the enlarged image and the content of the portion of the game field image located in the back of the enlarged image. Accordingly, it is possible to simultaneously grasp the overall image using the game field image and to grasp the details of the neighborhood of the sight position using the enlarged image without conducting a switch operation to the input device, thereby making it possible for the player to grasp lot of information in a short period of time.
Another aspect of the second embodiment of the invention is characterized by comprising a transparency change device for changing the transparency of the enlarged view in accordance with a player""s transparency change operation conducted to the input device in the game system.
According to this aspect, by adjusting transparency, the degree to which the game field image in the back of the enlarged image can be checked through the enlarged image, i.e., the clearness of the game field image can be adjusted. Accordingly, the player can arbitrarily adjust the transparency of the enlarged image depending on circumstances such as a circumstance where which is to be preferentially displayed, the enlarged image or the game field image, thereby making it possible to derive the function and advantage by the transparency processing to capacity.
A third embodiment of the invention is a game system comprising: a main monitor (9) provided to display a predetermined game field image (100); a game controller (20) having a pad-like housing (21) capable of being held by a player with player""s hands, and having an input device (22) including at least one operation member (e.g., 24) operated by the player and provided on the housing, and provided with a sub-monitor (32) allowing observation from externally of the housing; a control device (13) for executing a predetermined game while referring to a player""s operation conducted to the input device, and characterized in that the control device comprises: a first display control device for displaying the game field image on a screen of the main monitor; a sight position select device for changing a sight position (SP) in the game field image in accordance with a player""s position select operation conducted to the input device; and a second display control device for displaying an enlarged view relating to a predetermined range including the sight position on a screen of the sub-monitor.
According to this embodiment, even a pad-like game controller designed in view of versatility often has a monitor provided on the housing thereof. Due to this, it is possible to display the enlarged view near at the player""s hand while utilizing the monitor as a sub-monitor. Thus, it is possible to check the game field image with the main monitor and check the enlarged image with the sub-monitor and to accurately, easily obtain information which the player wants from the both images.
Another aspect of the third embodiment of the invention is characterized in that the game controller is provided with a portable information terminal (23) attachable to and detachable from the housing, and the sub-monitor is provided at the portable information terminal in the game system. According to this aspect, even with the pad-like game controller designed in view of versatility, there exists the game system realizing functions such as a function of utilizing the portable information terminal, which is installed to the housing, as, for example, a medium storing data corresponding to the results of a user""s play. Due to this, the monitor provided as a device for displaying various information on the portable information terminal in such a system is effectively utilized as a sub-monitor for displaying the enlarged image, thereby making it possible to easily realize the game system.
Another aspect of the above described embodiments is characterized in that a display position of the enlarged view is set so that the sight position in the enlarged view and the sight position in the game field position accord with each other in the game system. Accordingly, it is possible to separately utilize the enlarged image and the game field image by checking the neighborhood of the sight position with the enlarged image and checking the state of surroundings which do not include the enlarged image with the game field image.
A fourth embodiment of the invention provides a computer readable storage medium (15) recording a program for allowing a computer (13) constituting a game system to function as: a first display control device for displaying a game field image (100) on a predetermined monitor screen; a sight position select device for changing a sight position (SP) in the game field image in accordance with a player""s position select operation conducted to a predetermined input device (22); a second display control device for displaying an enlarged image (102) relating to a predetermined range including the sight position on the monitor screen; and a magnification change device for changing a magnification of the enlarged view relative to the game field image in accordance with a player""s magnification switch operation conducted to the input device. If the program recorded on this recording medium is read and executed by the computer, the game system of the first embodiment can be realized.
A fifth embodiment of the invention provides a computer readable storage medium (15) recording a program for allowing a computer (13) constituting a game system to function as: a first display control device for displaying a game field image (100) on a predetermined monitor screen; a sight position select device for changing a sight position (SP) in the game field image in accordance with a player""s position select operation conducted to a predetermined input device (22); a second display control device for displaying an enlarged view (102) relating to a predetermined range including the sight position on the monitor screen; and a transparency processing device allowing observation of the game field image in back of the enlarged view by transmitting said enlarged view to a predetermined transparency. If the program recorded on this recording medium is read and executed by the computer, the game system of the second embodiment can be realized.
A sixth embodiment of the invention provides a computer readable recording medium (15) recording a program for allowing a computer (13), applied to a game system comprising a main monitor (9) provided to display a predetermined game field image (100); a game controller (20) having a pad-like housing (21) capable of being held by a player with player""s hands, and having an input device (22) including at least one operation member (e.g., 24) operated by the player and provided on the housing, and provided with a sub-monitor (32) allowing observation from externally of the housing, and constituting the game controller, to function as: a first display control device for displaying the game field image on a screen of the main monitor; a sight position select device for changing a sight position (SP) in the game field image in accordance with a player""s position select operation conducted to the input device; and a second display control device for displaying an enlarged view (102) relating to a predetermined range including the sight position on a screen of the sub-monitor. If the program recorded on this recording medium is read and executed by the computer, the game system recited in the third embodiment can be realized.
In the invention recited in each embodiment, the game field image is constituted as an image which views all or a part of the state of a virtual space, in which a game progresses, from a specific viewpoint. If the game system is constituted to execute, for example, a shooting simulation game, the game field image can be constituted as an image which expresses, for example, a space, in which a shooting target is hidden, from the viewpoint of a virtual shooter (which is a player operation target character). The sight position in the game field image is a point noted by the player for some purpose in the game field image and corresponds to, for example, a point set as a shooting target in the shooting simulation game. The present invention is not, however, limited to the game system executing the shooting simulation game. The enlarged image is a concept indicating an image by which a game field can be observed through a telescope, binoculars or a magnifying optical system provided at a camera or the like. The present invention is applicable to various types of game systems requiring such images. The pad-like game controller exhibits a generally flat outline and is a game controller used while the player holds the game controller with both hands from laterally. A magnetic storage medium, an optical storage medium a magneto-optical storage medium, a semiconductor storage element and other various storage devices are included in the recording medium according to the present invention.